Union Sues Verizon, Citing Wire-Tap Rules

Union Sues Verizon, Citing Wire-Tap Rules
Tue August 19, 2003 07:19 PM ET

PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - The Communications Workers of America on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against Verizon Communications Inc. VZ.N , saying the telephone company improperly monitored a conference call with reporters.

The lawsuit lobbed a public complaint against Verizon as contract negotiations crawled forward. Bargainers for Verizon and two unions met in Washington to dissect details of contentious issues such as job security and the transfer of work to low-cost regions. Talks will continue on Wednesday.

In the lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, the CWA contended that two Verizon executives violated wiretap laws by monitoring an invitation-only conference call reserved for reporters.

The union said it believes the executives listened to the call without announcing their presence and relayed the meeting's content to other company officials. A copy of the lawsuit was obtained by Reuters.

"This is nonsense and it's harassment," said Verizon spokesman Eric Rabe.

"The CWA put out an invitation to this conference call that was widely available. People from Verizon identified themselves when they called in and they were admitted to the call," Rabe said.

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?

The lawsuit also outlined some back-and-forth bickering over the use of the phrase "Can you hear me now?," which is the advertising slogan used by Verizon's wireless unit.

The union previously had agreed to stop using that slogan in its public campaigns against layoffs at the company. The CWA said that the restriction did not apply to an occasional remark by individual union employees, the lawsuit said.

Verizon contended that a CWA executive had improperly used a variation of the "Can you hear me now?" phrase during the conference call. The company sought a ruling in federal court to hold the union in contempt, the lawsuit said.

The CWA denied violation of the agreement.

TALKS TO CONTINUE


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